| Target Population |
Patients with Rheumatoid Arthritis |
| Method/ Duration |
One to three times per week; 1.5 hour sessions; 8 weeks—ongoing |
| Personnel/ Training |
Three-person team(layperson, health professional and fitness professional ); At least 6 hours self-care training and self-help courses +12 hour for exercise training |
| Program Costs |
Accessible classroom/ meeting room or accessible heated pool; textbook; video projection; training costs and personnel |
| Key Content Areas |
- Cause, meaning, and how to deal with disease and its consequences; generalizable skills (e.g., problem solving, decision making, communicating with providers and doctor, cognitive restructuring/ self-talk techniques etc.); training/ support in adopting and maintaining health-related behaviors: exercise, relaxation, energy-saving techniques -Managing problems with pain, depression, sleep; benefits/barriers to exercise; relaxation techniques - Range-of-motion exercises; some muscle-strengthening exercises; games to promote socialization, endurance, balance, and coordination; relaxation component |
| Key Processes |
-Experiential educational methods (problem-solving discussions, brainstorming, demonstration/practice and feedback); -Self-efficacy-enhancing strategies (goal setting/ contracting, role modeling, peer support and persuasion, reinterpreting symptoms); -Behavioral modification techniques (shaping of behavior, repeated practice and feedback, self-monitoring/diaries, environmental cueing); -Social support strategies (involvement of significant others, buddy system, allotment of time for group sharing and feedback) -Supervised exercise training |
